Many institutions have turned to individualized holistic review to make admissions decisions, which is meant to take a comprehensive view of the quantitative and qualitative elements that comprise a single application. Prior research shows holistic review lacks a common definition and the gap between theory and practice has not been thoroughly…

Low-income students, even those with strong academic credentials, are unlikely to attend a highly selective college. With a field experiment, we test an intervention to increase enrollment of low-income students at the highly selective University of Michigan. We contact students (as well as their parents and principals) with an encouragement to…

There is currently a great deal of interest in the potential of reductions in or elimination of the cost of college attendance for students (here referred to as college subsidies) to increase equitable access to higher education. A number of Democratic presidential candidates have advanced proposals for such programs. However, because colleges and…

This research quantifies the extent of student-college academic undermatch among the 1992 and 2004 cohorts of graduating high school seniors and documents changes in the extent of academic undermatch over time. Tables are appended.

Active involvement in college activities is linked to a host of student development outcomes, including personal growth, achievement and satisfaction. Yet, to date there has been too little attention to how social class shapes campus involvement. Through an analysis of survey data of students attending a single elite university and a national…

Conducted by researchers at the Gardner Center at the request of the College Futures Foundation, this literature review examines challenges and promising practices for increasing college access and completion among boys and young men of color. Wide gaps in college enrollment and persistence remain, even among, for example, Black and Latino boys…

Gaining entry to a college of engineering is something that most people who eventually become engineers must do. However, for some this is not the straight-forward process for which a prospective student might hope, and because of this the authors are interested in how students navigate the process of admissions. In this study the authors are…

This publication describes "race-neutral" programs being implemented across the United States to work toward diversity in higher education without granting preferences based on race and ethnicity. Educational institutions will find that there are dozens of race-neutral options available and that the early results of these programs are…

Among all college applicants, the disproportionate number of qualified Asian students presents special problems to admissions officers. There is the "model minority" segment and the underside--the economically and socially deprived who are candidates for affirmative action programs. (MLW)

The question of how to build a student body from a large applicant pool was addressed in a 1980 study of students at the University of Kansas School of Architecture and Urban Design from 1969-78. The results of the selection process are presented. (MLW)

Describes a quantitative method for measuring probable success among university applicants, devised to introduce an admissions procedure at Beirut University College that will reduce failure and dropout rates. Predictor variables included type of high school, language of instruction, recommendations, sex, high school grades and major, and entrance…

The legal activity in federal courts related to affirmative action indicates a strong possibility the Supreme Court will abolish affirmative action in college admission. Such a decision would inevitably alter the landscape of higher education. Campus diversity will have to be achieved without using race or ethnicity to offer preference to some at…

The study analyzed data on 10,000 students with disabilities who took the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) between 1979 and 1983. It also examined college admissions policies toward such youth in terms of academic performance, minority status, parental income, and other characteristics. Major findings included the following: (1) the SAT performance…

Examined is the success of Monash's Early Leavers' Scheme in terms of the performance, characteristics, and experience of successful applicants, and the manner in which the scheme has operated. The first section of the report provides background information on the establishment of the Scheme (to provide a modification to entry requirements for…